Lot R to shrink with new freshman dorm construction

Lot R is closed this weekend as soil samples are taken to prepare for the construction of a new freshman dorm building. (Dakota Cunningham)

Parking Lot R will shrink by about 200 spaces following construction of a new housing project that is slated to begin next winter.

Nancy Pickens, facilities project manager, said the unnamed residence hall will reside in a portion of the space currently occupied by Parking Lot R, although the exact placement of the building has yet to be decided.

Project renderings of the building on the Facilities website show it sitting parallel to Liberty Square, between Liberty and what would be a shrunken Lot R.

In order to make space for the building project, Lot R will lose roughly 200 of its current 622 parking spaces next winter. The remaining 400 spaces will be available for Lot R permit holders.

There are no immediate plans to construct new parking decks or lots on campus as the loss of 200 spaces in Lot R is “absorbed into the overall parking supply,” according to Josh Cantor, director of parking and transportation services.  (The loss of Lots I and H to accommodate space for future expansion of the Whitetop and Rogers residence halls and the construction of a new College of Humanities and Social Sciences building will necessitate the construction of a new deck in the northwest area of campus, however, according to Cantor.)

With the reduction of available parking spaces, the process for acquiring a Lot R permit will also be changing, according to Cantor.  Cantor said the new permit process will involve selling a limited number of Lot R passes equal to the number of spaces, meaning all permit holders will be guaranteed a space. (In other words, if there are 400 available parking spaces, 400 parking permits will be sold.)

Prior to planned changes, any number of the roughly 1,000 students living in Potomac Heights or Liberty buildings was eligible to buy a Lot R permit for 622 available spaces. The potential surplus of permit holders compared to the spaces available meant that if there were no available parking spaces, students with a Lot R pass would have to park in non-restricted general parking areas.

In the event that all of the roughly 400 available permits are not sold to Liberty Square and Potomac Heights residents, Cantor said he wouldn’t rule out the possibility that the sale of remaining permits could be opened up to freshman students as well, but he said such a scenario is unlikely.

“We could theoretically open up [Lot R] to freshmen residents [if upperclassman permits do not sell out],” said to Cantor, “however, I doubt it would get to that.”

Lot R closing this weekend

To prepare for construction, Lot R will be closed for soil sample testing March 1-4. 

During the weekend closure, Lot R permit holders can park in all non-restricted general parking areas.   The overnight parking restrictions in the Rappahannock Parking Deck general area will be waived for Lot R permit holders during this time, allowing them to park in the deck between 2 and 5 a.m.

The soil samples taken will allow Mason Facilities to determine the content of the soil, which can affect the design of the building structure, according to Project Manager Nancy Pickens.